A protruding panel frame member embedded in surrounding concrete for the attachment of a window construction

ABSTRACT

An elongated boss is formed with opposed recesses which are engaged by mold elements and held in place during the hardening of concrete in the mold. The boss becomes embedded in the hardened concrete and includes a projecting portion which can receive a flexible gasket of a glazing construction.

United States Patent [191 Van Wuyckuyse 1 Jan. 2, 1973 [S4] A PROTRUDINGPANEL FRAME 2,515,977 7/1950 Banneyer ..249/39 MEMBER EMBEDDED 1N2,898,647 8/1959 Bush et a1.... ..52 399 s I 1 1 5 6 6 6 ATTACHMENT OF AWINDOW 219013210 9/1959 Richards ..249 39 CONSTRUCTION [75] Inventor:Hendrik Johan Van Wuyckuyse, FOREIGN PATENTS 0R APPLICATIONS Fwyidrecht,Netherlands 1,560,548 2/1969 France ..52/215 Assigneez SchokbemnProducts 714,692 9/1954 Great Britain ..52/731 [22] Filed: Oct. 21, 1970Primary Examiner-Alfred C. Perham [21] Appl No: 82,598 Attorney-RobertF. Hess [57] ABSTRACT [52] US. Cl. ..52/213, 52/127, 52/208,

52/400 5 7 249/39 An elongated boss 1s formed w1th opposed recesses 51161. c1. ..E06b 1/16 which are engaged y mold elements and held in Place[58] Field of Search ..52/127, 204, 213,216, 208, during the hardeningof concrete in the mold- The 52/396, 399, 400, 403, 398, 710, 731, 729;boss becomes embedded in the hardened concrete and 249/39 includes aprojecting portion which can receive a flexible gasket of a glazingconstruction. [56] References Cited 5 Claims, 1 Drawing Figure UNITEDSTATES PATENTS 2,705,415 4/1955 Livesay 52/2 04 1; 6 2; 1/ 22 I6 2 5 :Z/7 f I 22 1 a s /9 7 A/MI #12 3 d2 5 d 8 9 6 & J 0 O D 0 a 0 W O 00 0 4)9 g 0 O 0 0 up 0 0 0 0 0 Q 0 0 0 o o 0 0 0 0 0 0 O0 2 PROTRUDING PANELFRAME MEMBER EMBEDDED IN SURROUNDING CONCRETE FOR THE ATTACHMENT OF AWINDOW CONSTRUCTION BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention relatesto prefabricated concrete slabs, such as wall or roof elements, withprotruding bosses embedded therein and adapted for attachment of panelssuch as glazing constructions.

It is known to anchor a profiled boss of T-shape in a concrete slabelement by embedding the short flange and a part of the long flange inthe slab while a part of the long flange protrudes from the slabelement. Such a boss is used to attach a Neoprene basket of a glazingconstruction. It is extremely important that the boss protrude from theconcrete slab element an exact distance. Only in this way can theNeoprene gasket and the boss be joined with sufficient closure toprevent the passage of drafts and moisture past the glazingconstruction.

It is essential that the attachment of the boss to the wall or roofelement be as simple as possible and require a minimum of precisionpresetting operations.

An object of the invention is to provide a boss, and method ofinstallation thereof in a slab of settable material which satisfies theabove requirement.

In accordance with the above, the invention contemplates a profiled bossadapted for'attachment in .and projection from an element of settablematerial, said boss comprising anchoring means for being embedded in anelement of settable material for integral connection therewith,attachment means external of the element of settable material for theattachment to said boss of a glazing construction, and connection meansjoining said anchoring means and the attachment means, said connectionmeans defining at least one cavity between said anchoring means and saidattachment means for the introduction and engagement of a member to holdthe profiled boss in place so the anchoring means can become embedded inthe settable material as the latter hardens.

Preferably, the boss has two cavities in opposition to one another, eachcavity being bounded by inclined walls enabling removal of the holdingmembers after the settable material has hardened.

The invention further contemplates a method of attaching a panelconstruction to the element and the method comprises holding the boss ina mold by engagement of the boss at the cavity, whereafter the settablematerial is cast in the mold to embed part of the boss therein withanother part projecting from the mold. After the settable material hashardened, it is removed as 'a slab from the mold with the boss securedthereto and the panel construction is then attached to the part of theboss projecting from the mold.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The sole FIGURE of the drawing is atransverse cross-section through an assembly of a slab, a profiled bossand a portion of a glazing construction.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to the drawing, therein is seen a portionof a slab 1 of settable material such as concrete which can be a wall ora ceiling element of a building. A profiled boss 2 is secured to theslab l and projects therefrom as shown. The boss 2 is formed byextruding a plastic material.

The boss 2 comprises a bottom wall 3, which covers the slab l in amanner to be explained more fully hereafter, a panel attachment portion4 for connection with a panel construction P such as a glazingconstruction. The panel attachment portion includes a hollow portion 5bounded by the side walls of portion 4, the bottom wall 3, andconnecting wall 20. The portion 4 is also hollow, and of substantiallyrectangular cross-section as shown.

Cavities 6 and 7 serve for the introduction of mold elements M, and M,as shown in dotted outline for the purpose of holding the boss in placeso it can be embedded in the settable material as the latter hardens aswill be explained more fully later. The slab attachment portion of boss2, which includes bottom wall 3, has wall elements 8 and 9 extendingdownwardly and outwardly with respect to portion 4, and wall elements 10and 11 respectively extend perpendicularly to wall elements 8 and 9 andare embedded in slab l. The boss has surfaces 12 and 13 bounding theupper ends of cavities 6 and 7 respectively, and the inclination ofsurfaces 12 and 13 and wall elements 8 and 9 provide an outwardlydiverging shape for cavities 6 and 7.

The boss has a longitudinal plane of symmetry which passes perpendicularto outer wall 14 of portion 4 at the center thereof. The wall 14 isprecisely positioned relative to the covering bottom wall 3 so that thewall 14 will lie at a fixed distance from the face of the slab sincebottom wall 3 abuts the face of the slab as will be explained later.

A flexible gasket 15 of a rubber material such as Neoprene is mounted onthe panel attachment portion 4 and is precisely fitted thereon so as toform a seal therewith which prevents passage of drafts and moisturethrough the assembly of the panel construction P and boss 2. The panelconstruction comprises a pair of glass panes l6 separated from oneanother by beam 17, the beam and the ends of the glass panes beinginserted into a recess in the gasket 15 in sealed relation therein. Anelastic strip 18 is inserted in a groove 19 in gasket 15 to press thegasket against the panes l6 and the attachment portion 14.

The fabrication of the assembly is as follows:

Mold elements M, and M are inserted into cavities 6 and 7 to hold theboss 2 in place in fixed relation in the mold. Concrete, .or othersuitable settable material is cast in the mold and the elements 10 and11 become embedded in the material to anchor the boss 2 to the slabwhich is formed by the hardened material. The wall elements 8 and 9 abutand cover the face of the slabas does bottom wall 3 due to the castingof the slab thereagainst. This insures the accurate location of wall 14from the face of the slab and in this way the shaped gasket will receivethe attachment portion 2 with precision fit and provide a sealedrelation between the face of wall 14 and the gasket 15. After hardeningof the settable material, the mold elements are withdrawn from cavities6 and 7, this being facilitated by the divergent shape of the cavities.The panel construction P is then installed on the boss 2 now secured inthe slab 1.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination, a concrete slab and a panel frame member embeddedtherein and defining an opening in the concrete slab, a panelconstruction, such as a window or the like within said opening andadapted to be held securely in place by a resilient seal interposedbetween and overlapping in sealing engagement both the panelconstruction and said window frame member, said panel frame membercomprising;

a longitudinal panel attachment portion adapted to receive the resilientseal, and a slab attachment portion for embeddedly securing said panelframe member to said concrete slab;

said panel attachment portion having an outer wall adjacent to andextending substantially parallel with an edge of the panel construction,two side walls and a bottom wall, at least one of said side wallsincluding a wall surface portion directed inwardly from the outermostexterior surface of said side wall and toward the center of said panelattachment portion;

said slab attachment portion means comprising a first longitudinallyextending member including a first wall element, said first wall elementextending outwardly at one end thereof from one of said side walls frompanel attachment and defining together with said wall surface portion ofsaid panel attachment portion a longitudinally extending cavity, saidfirst wall element being substantially flush with an outer surface ofsaid concrete panel, and means depending downwardly from said slabattachment portion and being completely embedded within the concretepanel wherein said panel member is held in fixed relation with saidconcrete slab and;

said panel attachment portion further including a connecting wallelement extending from each of said two side walls and providing aninsulating frame portion intermediate said outer wall and said slabattachment portion, said insulating frame portion being bound by saidtwo side walls, said bottom wall and said connecting wall, each of saidtwo side walls being spaced relative to the other and said bottom walland said connecting wall being spaced relative to the other, whereby acompletely enclosed hollow portion is formed between said concrete slaband the outer wall of said panel attachment portion, and said bottomwall being substantially flush with said concrete slab and beingconnected to said first wall element.

2. A panel construction frame member for use in securing a panelconstruction such as a window and the like within an opening defined atleast in part by the frame member and being of integral, moldedconstruction, comprising:

a longitudinally extending, fully enclosed, hollow, substantially squarepanel attachment portion said panel attachment portion having an outerwall, two side walls and a bottom wall;

a slab attachment portion for embeddedly securing said panel framemember within a concrete slab;

said slab attachment portion comprising a first longitudinally extendingsubstantially V-shaped channel member including first and second wallelements, said first wall element extending outwardly at one end thereoffrom one of said side walls of the panel attachment portion and defininga substantially V-shaped cavity therewith, said first wall element beingsubstantially flat, and said second wall element depending downwardlytherefrom at the outermost edge of said first wall element;

said slab attachment portion further comprising a second longitudinallyextending substantially V- shaped channel member including first andsecond wall elements, said first wall element extending outwardly fromthe other of said side walls of the panel attachment portion anddefining a substantially V-shaped cavity therewith, said first wallelement being substantially flat, and said second wall element dependingdownwardly therefrom at the outennost edge of said first wall element;

said panel attachment portion further including a connecting wallelement extending from said two side walls and providing an insulatingframe portion intermediate said outer wall and said slab attachmentportion, said insulating frame portion being bounded by respective wallportions of said two side walls, said bottom wall, and said connectingwall element, each respective wall portion being spaced relative to theother, and said bottom wall and said connecting wall element beingspaced relative to the other, whereby a completely enclosed hollowportion is formed between said concrete slab and the outer wall of saidpanel attachment portion, and;

said respective wall portions of said two side walls each being disposedinwardly of the remaining portions of said side walls, each of saidfirst and second wall elements of said slab attachment portion meansbeing connected to a respective one of said respective wall portions anddiverging outwardly therefrom and defining a substantially V- shapedcavity therewith.

3. In combination, a concrete slab and a panel frame member embeddedtherein and defining an opening in the concrete slab, a panelconstruction such as a window and the like within said opening, andadapted to be held securely in place by a resilient seal interposedbetween and overlapping in sealing engagement both the panelconstruction and said window frame member, said panel frame membercomprising:

a longitudinally extending panel attachment portion adapted to receivethe resilient seal, and a slab attachment portion for embeddedlysecuring said panel frame member to said concrete slab;

said panel attachment portion having an outer wall adjacent to andextending substantially parallel with an edge of the panel construction,two side walls and a bottom wall, at least one of said side wallsincluding a wall surface portion directed inwardly from the outermostexterior surfaces of said side wall and toward the center of said panelattachment portion, said slab attachment portion comprising a firstlongitudinally extending member including a first wall element, saidfirst wall element extending outwardly at one end thereof from said atleast one side wall of the panel attachment portion and definingtogether with said wall surface portion thereof a longitudinallyextending cavity;

said wall surface portion of said at least one of said side walls ofsaid panel attachment portion and said first wall element of saidlongitudinally extending member of said slab attachment portion beinginclined relative to one another wherein said longitudinally extendingcavity is substantially V- shaped;

said first wall element being substantially flush with an outer surfaceof said concrete panel, and means depending downwardly from said slabattachment portion and being completely embedded within the concretepanel wherein said panel frame member is held in fixed relation withsaid concrete slab.

4. The combination, as'defined in claim 3, wherein the other of said twoside walls opposite said at least one side wall includes a wall surfaceportion directed inwardly from the outermost exterior surfaces thereofand toward the center of said panel attachment portion;

said slab attachment portion further comprising a second longitudinallyextending member including a first wall element, said first wall elementextending outwardly from said other of said two side walls of the panelattachment portion and defining together with said wall surface portionof said other of said two side walls a second longitudinally extendingcavity;

said wall surface portion of said other of said two side walls of saidpanel attachment portion and said first wall element of said secondlongitudinally extending member of said slab attachment portion beinginclined relative to one another whereby said second longitudinallyextending cavity is substantially V-shaped and;

said first wall element of said other of said two side walls beingsubstantially flush with an outer surface of said concrete panel. 5. Apanel frame member adapted forum in com- 5 comprising:

a longitudinally extending panel attachment portion adapted to receive aresilient seal which in turn is adapted to hold a window panel in firmengagement, and a slab attachment portion adapted to be embeddedlysecured to a concrete slab;

said panel attachment portion having an outer wall, two side walls, anda bottom wall, each of said side walls including a respective wallsurface portion directed inwardly from the outermost exterior surfacesof the respective two sides walls and toward the center of said panelattachment portion;

said slab attachment portion comprising two longitudinally extendingmembers, each disposed on a respective side of said panel attachmentportion and including a respective first wall element, each saidrespective first wall element extending outwardly at one end thereoffrom the respective two side walls of the panel attachment portion anddefining together with said wall surface portion thereof alongitudinally extending cavity, each said wall portion of said two sidewalls of said panel attachment portion and said respective first wallele-' ment of said longitudinally extending member of said slabattachment portion being inclined relative to one another whereby saidlongitudinally ex tending cavity is substantially V-shaped, and;

each said first wall element adapted to lie substantially flush with anouter surface of a concrete slab, and means depending downwardly fromsaid slab attachment portion and adapted to be completely embedded witha concrete slab so as to hold the panel frame member in fixed relationtherewith.

1. In combination, a concrete slab and a panel frame member embeddedtherein and defining an opening in the concrete slab, a panelconstruction, such as a window or the like within said opening andadapted to be held securely in place by a resilient seal interposedbetween and overlapping in sealing engagement both the panelconstruction and said window frame member, said panel frame membercomprising; a longitudinal panel attachment portion adapted to receivethe resilient seal, and a slab attachment portion for embeddedlysecuring said panel frame member to said concrete slab; said panelattachment portion having an outer wAll adjacent to and extendingsubstantially parallel with an edge of the panel construction, two sidewalls and a bottom wall, at least one of said side walls including awall surface portion directed inwardly from the outermost exteriorsurface of said side wall and toward the center of said panel attachmentportion; said slab attachment portion means comprising a firstlongitudinally extending member including a first wall element, saidfirst wall element extending outwardly at one end thereof from one ofsaid side walls from panel attachment and defining together with saidwall surface portion of said panel attachment portion a longitudinallyextending cavity, said first wall element being substantially flush withan outer surface of said concrete panel, and means depending downwardlyfrom said slab attachment portion and being completely embedded withinthe concrete panel wherein said panel member is held in fixed relationwith said concrete slab and; said panel attachment portion furtherincluding a connecting wall element extending from each of said two sidewalls and providing an insulating frame portion intermediate said outerwall and said slab attachment portion, said insulating frame portionbeing bound by said two side walls, said bottom wall and said connectingwall, each of said two side walls being spaced relative to the other andsaid bottom wall and said connecting wall being spaced relative to theother, whereby a completely enclosed hollow portion is formed betweensaid concrete slab and the outer wall of said panel attachment portion,and said bottom wall being substantially flush with said concrete slaband being connected to said first wall element.
 2. A panel constructionframe member for use in securing a panel construction such as a windowand the like within an opening defined at least in part by the framemember and being of integral, molded construction, comprising: alongitudinally extending, fully enclosed, hollow, substantially squarepanel attachment portion said panel attachment portion having an outerwall, two side walls and a bottom wall; a slab attachment portion forembeddedly securing said panel frame member within a concrete slab; saidslab attachment portion comprising a first longitudinally extendingsubstantially V-shaped channel member including first and second wallelements, said first wall element extending outwardly at one end thereoffrom one of said side walls of the panel attachment portion and defininga substantially V-shaped cavity therewith, said first wall element beingsubstantially flat, and said second wall element depending downwardlytherefrom at the outermost edge of said first wall element; said slabattachment portion further comprising a second longitudinally extendingsubstantially V-shaped channel member including first and second wallelements, said first wall element extending outwardly from the other ofsaid side walls of the panel attachment portion and defining asubstantially V-shaped cavity therewith, said first wall element beingsubstantially flat, and said second wall element depending downwardlytherefrom at the outermost edge of said first wall element; said panelattachment portion further including a connecting wall element extendingfrom said two side walls and providing an insulating frame portionintermediate said outer wall and said slab attachment portion, saidinsulating frame portion being bounded by respective wall portions ofsaid two side walls, said bottom wall, and said connecting wall element,each respective wall portion being spaced relative to the other, andsaid bottom wall and said connecting wall element being spaced relativeto the other, whereby a completely enclosed hollow portion is formedbetween said concrete slab and the outer wall of said panel attachmentportion, and; said respective wall portions of said two side walls eachbeing disposed inwardly of the remaining portions of said side walls,each of said first and second walL elements of said slab attachmentportion means being connected to a respective one of said respectivewall portions and diverging outwardly therefrom and defining asubstantially V-shaped cavity therewith.
 3. In combination, a concreteslab and a panel frame member embedded therein and defining an openingin the concrete slab, a panel construction such as a window and the likewithin said opening, and adapted to be held securely in place by aresilient seal interposed between and overlapping in sealing engagementboth the panel construction and said window frame member, said panelframe member comprising: a longitudinally extending panel attachmentportion adapted to receive the resilient seal, and a slab attachmentportion for embeddedly securing said panel frame member to said concreteslab; said panel attachment portion having an outer wall adjacent to andextending substantially parallel with an edge of the panel construction,two side walls and a bottom wall, at least one of said side wallsincluding a wall surface portion directed inwardly from the outermostexterior surfaces of said side wall and toward the center of said panelattachment portion, said slab attachment portion comprising a firstlongitudinally extending member including a first wall element, saidfirst wall element extending outwardly at one end thereof from said atleast one side wall of the panel attachment portion and definingtogether with said wall surface portion thereof a longitudinallyextending cavity; said wall surface portion of said at least one of saidside walls of said panel attachment portion and said first wall elementof said longitudinally extending member of said slab attachment portionbeing inclined relative to one another wherein said longitudinallyextending cavity is substantially V-shaped; said first wall elementbeing substantially flush with an outer surface of said concrete panel,and means depending downwardly from said slab attachment portion andbeing completely embedded within the concrete panel wherein said panelframe member is held in fixed relation with said concrete slab.
 4. Thecombination, as defined in claim 3, wherein the other of said two sidewalls opposite said at least one side wall includes a wall surfaceportion directed inwardly from the outermost exterior surfaces thereofand toward the center of said panel attachment portion; said slabattachment portion further comprising a second longitudinally extendingmember including a first wall element, said first wall element extendingoutwardly from said other of said two side walls of the panel attachmentportion and defining together with said wall surface portion of saidother of said two side walls a second longitudinally extending cavity;said wall surface portion of said other of said two side walls of saidpanel attachment portion and said first wall element of said secondlongitudinally extending member of said slab attachment portion beinginclined relative to one another whereby said second longitudinallyextending cavity is substantially V-shaped and; said first wall elementof said other of said two side walls being substantially flush with anouter surface of said concrete panel.
 5. A panel frame member adaptedfor use in combination with a concrete slab to define an opening thereinfor insertion of a window panel or the like, comprising: alongitudinally extending panel attachment portion adapted to receive aresilient seal which in turn is adapted to hold a window panel in firmengagement, and a slab attachment portion adapted to be embeddedlysecured to a concrete slab; said panel attachment portion having anouter wall, two side walls, and a bottom wall, each of said side wallsincluding a respective wall surface portion directed inwardly from theoutermost exterior surfaces of the respective two sides walls and towardthe center of said panel attachment portion; said slab attachmentportion comprising two longitudinally extending membErs, each disposedon a respective side of said panel attachment portion and including arespective first wall element, each said respective first wall elementextending outwardly at one end thereof from the respective two sidewalls of the panel attachment portion and defining together with saidwall surface portion thereof a longitudinally extending cavity, eachsaid wall portion of said two side walls of said panel attachmentportion and said respective first wall element of said longitudinallyextending member of said slab attachment portion being inclined relativeto one another whereby said longitudinally extending cavity issubstantially V-shaped, and; each said first wall element adapted to liesubstantially flush with an outer surface of a concrete slab, and meansdepending downwardly from said slab attachment portion and adapted to becompletely embedded with a concrete slab so as to hold the panel framemember in fixed relation therewith.